Emotional Catholics – How to Deal with Your Feelings

You’re not alone; this is a common problem. I struggle with it daily. Why are emotions so confusing? Well, the world is no longer the place God created it to be; originally, everything and everyone was in harmony with God. As a result of free will, however, division reared its ugly head. Now, the human condition suffers because of sin.

Our feelings often seem to have a mind of their own, independent of what we know to be true by reason or by faith. At times, for example, I feel drawn to things that my conscience deems wrong and damaging but my emotions deem desirable (like sleeping in when I have important work to do…). At other times, I feel repulsed by things that my reason or my faith tells me are good and important but my emotions label as undesirable (like taking time out of my busy schedule to simply sit with the Lord and pray, or making a difficult but necessary phone call).
At still other times, the intensity of my emotions seems to have no basis in reality, and my moods swing wildly up and down, making life turbulent and chaotic (as when I take out my internal frustrations on someone I love, someone who has nothing to do with the real cause of those frustrations).

What’s the point of all this chaos??

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us that our emotions are a bridge between A.) the world we experience, and B.) our mind (see CCC pp. 1764). God gave us emotions for a reason: to help us process and express our experiences.

Often, we blame ‘negative’ emotions like fear, anger, and sadness as the source of our problems… “I wish I didn’t feel so _____.”

Widely-known Catholic psychologist Dr. Gregory Popcak explains : “The feeling isn’t the problem. The feeling is the warning light telling you to look for the problem.” He continues:

Our emotions remind us of the need to strive for the Original Unity in which we were created to live. Emotions are not the enemy. In fact, they can serve us well as long as we don’t try to shut them down by rashly cutting people out of our lives, or by drinking, drugging, indulging our passions, or taking foolish risks in a desperate, reactionary attempt to plug our ears to the warning bells and blindfold ourselves so we can’t see the flashing red lights.

This used to be my hidden problem. I would often bury my feelings rather than face them and examine their cause. When I got married, my husband began to teach me how to healthily deal with my emotions. However, I came to learn that in our imperfect world, none of us have perfectly-formed emotions. When my anxiety began to exceed the understanding of both myself and my spouse, my husband urged me to seek professional help.

I did not like that advice at all. Pride and vanity kept me away; our society tends to see counseling as something ‘desperate people’ or ‘messed up people’ need. ‘Those people’ were below me, I thought. On top of that lay the fear of the unknown. Thankfully, I did muster up the courage to begin sessions with a professional counselor. I wish I hadn’t waited so long!

—> So, how can a Catholic deal with the chaos of his or her emotions?

Take care of yourself. As Catholics, we believe that body and soul are integrated. “The unity of soul and body is so profound that one has to consider the soul to be the ‘form’ of the body” (CCC pp. 365). So, whatever we do to our bodies will affect our emotions. Sometimes all you need is a good night’s sleep to regulate those out-of-whack feelings.

Make time to pray and be silent. Recent psychological research has demonstrated that spiritual meditation, prayer, and feeling close to God helps regulate one’s emotions (see source below). Think about it: If your emotions are a God-given gift, then spending time with God can help us understand that gift. Moreover, the ‘information overload’ we experience in today’s world can not only be distracting and disorienting, but researchers have evidence that it actually tires out the brain worse than marijuana use. Silence and prayer are so important.

Stop and listen to your emotions. What are they telling you? Journaling may help. If your emotions seem overwhelming or somehow disordered, don’t hesitate to ask for expert guidance. Email Christopher Stravitsch with Rejoice Family Apostolate for a Catholic counselor recommendation in the San Antonio or Houston area. Live elsewhere? Use CatholicTherapists.com.

Thank God. Your emotions are a gift. Thank God for the time, people, and resources he has provided you to help sort them out. Have hope! Though your feelings may be confusing now, remember that through discipline and seeking help, you will draw closer to peace and union with God thanks to more healthy, well-formed emotions. What an awesome gift!

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About Angela Sealana (Santana)

Angela is Ministry Coordinator for The Pilgrim Center of Hope.
The Pilgrim Log is the blog of the Pilgrim Center of Hope, a Catholic evangelization ministry, providing weekly spiritual reflections to help you journey toward a deeper relationship with Christ. Learn more about the Pilgrim Center of Hope by visiting http://www.pilgrimcenterofhope.org.